Requirements for the Wednesday game are slightly different from that of my two regular campaigns.

If you are interested in joining this campaign, you must:

1. Be 18 years old or older. Older is preferred. We recognize that age is not usually a reliable barometer of maturity, but in our experience, most players who we have come across that we have liked or who have joined the campaign tend to be past this point.

2. Lurk for at least one session from beginning to end (two sessions are preferred).

3. Submit a backstory for a sample 1st level character named "Bob".

One thing we've noticed of late is that a lot of players seem to equate "more exotic" with "better." This is an attitude that 3E and 3.5 D&D seems to foster, what with half-dragons and half-celestials and mineralized warriors and I don't know what-all. There are players out there who turn up their noses at humans because they prefer "real roleplaying"--meaning they prefer to play something impossibly exotic and powerful--and humans are "boring."

Before I let someone run, though, I want to see them walk. Before I let them play a truly bizarre character, I want to see them demonstrate that they have the skill to do so.

A good player can play anything and play it well. If a player can't find a way to make a human character unique and believable, though...given that he IS a human, and has some idea of how they think...how am I supposed to believe he'll be able to do the same for an elf who has lived hundreds of years? How am I supposed to believe he'll be able to do the same for something even more exotic than that?

There's nothing inherently wrong with an exotic character. There is something wrong with using 'exotic' as a substitute for 'interesting.'

If I've learned one truth in three decades of gaming, it's this: if a player isn't creative enough to make a human "not boring"--if he can't come up with something unique and interesting enough to make the character exciting--then he darned well can't do it with a Cosmic Vampiric Dragon-Elf.

Instead of having a flat, lifeless, cardboard character, he'll have a flat, lifeless, cardboard character with lots of powers and pointed ears, that's all.

Thus: Bob. Someone who can take a painfully-average human, the blandest by the book character possible and make something interesting, exciting, and unique out of him....THAT, to me, is the measure of a good player.

"Bob" is a 1st level character. He is human and can be of any character class so long as it can be found in the 3.5 D&D Player's Handbook. He can be from Faerun or from a setting of your choice. The only limit is your imagination.

He may be of any alignment as long as it is a non-evil alignment.

His ability scores are: 7, 10, 12, 11, 13 and 9. Arrange them as you see fit. Assume he has full hit points and maximum gold per the book for a starting 1st level character of the appropriate class. Equipment, skills and feats are up to you.

Your assignment is to create a character and a substantial background story. When you write the story, remember that quality is preferable over quantity. In doing so, you should attempt to answer any or all of the following questions: What is his personality like? What is his primary motivation? What are his ambitions or goals? What are his likes and dislikes? If Bob were the protagonist in a novel, why should the reader care about him enough to continue reading beyond chapter 1?

You have one week to create the character background. E-mail the character to SobaAddict70 at gmail dot com. When you e-mail the character, please put "Andurin -- Bob's background" in the subject line and paste the background information into the e-mail; DO NOT send as an attachment or I might treat the e-mail as spam.

Your submission will be judged by the players to see whether or not you might fit into the group. They want to see your point of view. This is your chance to show us what you can do, so strut your stuff!

4. Undergo a player/DM interview. This is where you and I can, short of an impromptu session, get some kind of feel for our individual styles as player and DM respectively. The interview is needed because in my opinion, not every player is suitable for every DM and vice versa. I do not particularly like recruiting but I view it as a necessary evil especially when forming a serious campaign. I prefer to conduct the interview on Open, and am generally accessible after 7 pm EST. At least one player from the campaign will be present, so you can expect questions from them as well as from myself.

If you are under 18 but think that you are capable of being a mature, considerate and responsible individual, then the interview is your chance to demonstrate to us your capability.

You do not have to read the game logs, although it would be helpful if you did. Once the campaign has been running for six months or more, I will make the reading a requirement.